F
London Jr. Knight
U16
AAA
5'8
145
An extremely passionate and outgoing player, forward Talan Palmer plays similar to someone like Brad Marchand. Palmer excels though his two-way game, where he is respected for his ability to understand and buy into a system very well. Offensively, Palmer packs high speed and strong edge work, which when coupled with how shifty he is, allows him to score and set up plays effortlessly. Palmer sports good hands around the net area, high vision and hockey IQ, and is dominant in the faceoff circle, all of which have helped him secure spots on the teams PK and PP units. Palmer loves the grittier side of the game as well, and has no issue to throw his body around in puck battles. Palmer's strength makes him more confident when going into the corners, where he will battle hard, or even plant himself out front and screen the goalie. Palmer is a very coachable player overall, and brings a lot of character in both the dressing room and on the bench. Palmer’s outgoing personality, which includes a great sense of humour, yet also a caring, resilient and dependable side, makes him an extremely likable player amongst his teammates. Palmer is currently working on his all around game as a whole, especially with defensive positioning and puck protection, as well as his strength training on and off the ice. At the OHL level, Palmer could deploy the same style he has been using all along, small, strong, and skilled. This could help him become a very reliable OHLer that could play anywhere in the lineup depending on how he is developed. Expect to see Palmer’s name in the earlier rounds of the draft, where he will surely make his name known at the next level.